Coercion
by theSilverChef
Summary: Connie's sympathetic nature and powers of persuasion lead to an ex parte conversation with Jack.  Just how far is she willing to go to save Mike?  Missing scene from "Innocence".


_**Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters. They belong to Dick Wolf and NBC**_

_**AN: Soooo I was watching re-runs, and surprise surprise, a plot bunny popped up. I hope you enjoy :) This takes place the Monday after Mike's hearing in Judge Braden's office. (See "Innocence" for the context.)  
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><p>"You're here early." Jack McCoy stepped into his office, surprised to find that at 7:30 in the morning, it was already occupied. Connie Rubirosa sat in one of the armchairs.<p>

"I wanted to catch you before the usual Monday morning chaos commences," she twisted in her seat to face him, giving a slim but pleasant smile.

Jack shut the door and crossed the room to hang his jacket and shoulder bag on the coat rack. "Well, for the time being, you have my full and undivided attention."

She waited for him to sit at his workstation before continuing. "I wanted to speak to you about... Well… I need a favor."

"Those words have brought me nothing but trouble in the past," he jested, leaning back in his leather chair and resting his feet on the worn wooden surface of his desk. "What can I do for you?"

Connie fidgeted with the drawstring on her blue sweater blouse. "Mike is _terrified_ that you're going to give him the pink slip."

"As he should be."

"I won't argue with you there. He's made his own bed," she signaled agreement.

"And yet you're here to beg for mercy, presumably." Jack's eyes narrowed with cutting scrutiny, challenging her to proceed.

Hesitantly, she made her case. "We've _all_ made green mistakes."

"You and I have never purported to be anything other than what we are."

"And neither has Mike! You heard what he said, Jack. His mentor—practically a surrogate parent—told him it was minor little detail that would easily be overlooked. He trusted her judgment."

Jack scoffed, "Oh, please; he wasn't born yesterday. He took her words to mean that the rules didn't apply to him. It's a practice that he hasn't outgrown."

"Ruining his life is _not_ the way to teach him a lesson. You're being vindictive." Connie rose from her chair and paced the office.

"'People who fight fire with fire usually end up with ashes.'"

"'Let he without sin cast the first stone.'" Connie glared in annoyance at Jack's intransigence. "Mike's got one of the best conviction records in this entire building. He delivers results time and again, and he's passionate about what he does. He may be insufferably arrogant at times, and his methods are sometimes unorthodox, but he certainly demonstrates the good moral character required by the Bar overseers."

"He lied to the them _and _this office, Connie." Jack swung his legs to the floor and leaned forward in his chair as he made his point. "He has allowed this 'minor little detail' to remain under wraps for _years_. That's hardly a venial sin."

"His Law degree is a separate entity. It doesn't become null and void just because a few undergraduate credits slipped through the cracks and because _you_ didn't catch the oversight."

"Honesty and integrity is a requirement of all applicants to this office. It's not my job to go through résumés with a fine-toothed comb." Two pairs of brown eyes battled for supremacy.

"It's also not your job to crucify him to set some pious example. You said yourself in Judge Braden's chambers that the _only_ issue here is whether Mike's impropriety has infringed on Stuber's right to a fair trial, and you and I both know that it hasn't. This is just another ludicrous attempt to keep the spotlight off of the Innocence Coalition's questionable behavior, and you're giving them exactly what they want! A distraction!"

"And what would you have me do?" Jack rescinded his posturing, hoping that a more passive approach would poke holes in her hot air balloon of an argument.

Connie exhaled deeply. "Talk to Emily Ryan. Get her to wheedle Stuber into taking a plea bargain."

Jack's eyebrows nearly hit the ceiling. "That's absurd! Setting aside the fact that we're dealing with a potential hornet's nest: even if _she _agreed to that, Mike's too stubborn to go along with it."

"Then force his hand—threaten him if you have to."

"I don't have time to play puppeteer, Connie," Jack barked, shoving his glasses on and reading through his usual stack of morning memos.

"It's for his own good, Jack!" she edged closer to his desk, her arms folded stoutly across her chest. "I know that it's been a rough road for you two, but ultimately, he looks up to you. If you hang him out to dry now, you're no better than Professor Ryan. You will only heighten his perception that loyalty and empathy are mythical ideas."

"And, I _certainly_ don't have time to sort out an employee's abandonment issues."

"Then do it for me." She dropped her arms to her side, a look of defiant determination distorting her normally soft features.

"What has gotten into you?" he quizzed angrily. "A couple of weeks ago, you were furious with him for publicly rehashing _another_ time you were furious with him. Six months ago, you were ready to transfer to another department! Now, you're putting your own job on the line to help him keep his. Is there something I'm missing? Just think for a moment, Connie. Do you really believe that _he_ would be _here_ if the tables were turned and _you_ were the one on the chopping block?"

"Yes, I do," she declared firmly. "We're a team. Mike and Connie, Connie and Mike, Rubirosa and Cutter; however you want to put it. If he goes… I go."

"Don't be ridiculous." Jack continued to pore over notes, messages, and other mail. The lack of response from her prompted him to meet her entreating eyes. "You're serious?"

She gave a curt nod. Jack sighed with frustration. "You're giving me an ulcer."

"If you kick Mike to the curb, the subsequent guilt will feel ten times worse," Connie reasoned. "Do the right thing, here, Jack."

She turned and walked confidently out of the office, knowing that she had struck a nerve. Jack regarded the open doorway for a long moment before dragging his Rolodex closer to him and sifting through the cards. He found what he was looking for and picked up his phone, dialing Hudson University. "Yes, hello, this is District Attorney Jack McCoy... I'm doing well, thank you ... I was wondering if you could give me Professor Emily Ryan's office hours ... Yes, I'll hold."

...

_The End  
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><p><em><strong>AN: I always thought it was sort of weird that Jack went to talk to Professor Ryan to save Mike's behind, but at the end of the episode, he implies that he's still pretty pissed off. I think it's very plausible that Connie<strong>___**did _have something to do with Jack's visit to the Innocence Coalition. :) _**


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